'Next Silicon Valley' Ambitions in Las Vegas

Ed Komenda writes a feature article on the plans of Las Vegas to become "the next Silicon Valley" for the Las Vegas Sun. Komenda begins the feature by reporting the surprise announcement by Governor Brian Sandoval during his State of the State address that the Las Vegas-based data company Switch "will dole out $2 billion to build 4.5 million square feet of additional warehouse space in Las Vegas and Reno, bringing an estimated 5,000 new jobs to the economy."

After detailing some of the past efforts to position Las Vegas as a capital for the tech industry (Switch, for instance, purchased a fiber optic network put in place and left for the taking by the infamous Enron), Komenda goes on to detail "the six most important factors that will make or break Las Vegas’s future as a major technology hub." That list comprises 1) education, 2) connectivity, 3) financial, 4) transportation, 5) culture, and Hsieh (of course).

On transportation, Komenda notes that Las Vegas has 40 million visitors a year, so new and existing business is always on the doorstep. But Southwest Nevada still lacks a public transit system worthy of the metro area's size to move that business around.